A man from India has lost nearly 100 loved ones from his village in deadly landslides as hundreds of rescue workers continue searching for missing bodies.
Some 300 rescue workers searched through mud and debris on Wednesday as the death toll from multiple landslides in Southern India had risen to 166.
Landslides occurred in Kerala following torrential rains triggering torrents of mud and water that swept through tea estates and villages.
Rescue workers have continued to make their way carefully through slush and rocks, under steady rain, and have returned 77 bodies to families. However, many are still lost.
A UAE expat from Kerala has expressed grief about how over a hundred of his family and friends have either gone missing or have been killed.
While his parents, wife and daughters are safe because they live half a kilometre away from the site of the landslide, more than 90 of his extended family members have been killed, while an additional 12 of his friends having gone missing.
Shajahan Kuttiyath, 37, told the Standard: “The part of my country where I was born and brought up is completely gone as there’s no shortage of rain which is what my family said when I called home on Monday evening. By 11:30pm, messages were pouring into the WhatsApp groups from across the country.
“As it was night, I thought nothing major had happened, but by dawn the confirmations were overwhelming. All of a sudden, the wayanad-district of the Kerala state Meppadi had disappeared. My friends and family had all gone, along with houses, schools, temples and churches.
He added: “All my friends and relatives, and even my daughter’s best friend will be included in this death toll of around 200 people … and I know all of them very well.
“The search is still ongoing, there are many children who are still unaccounted for, and we may have to wait for days to know of the correct number of people lost.”
Mr Kuttiyath said people are going to hospitals to search for loved ones and that he is continuing to be sent photos of those missing or found dead.
The landslide, which struck on Tuesday, has swept people away to their death while sleeping, following heavy rain in Kerala. It is one India's most attractive tourist destinations.
The landslides have been recorded as the worst disaster to hit the state since deadly floods in 2018.
